Several incidents of vandalism over the past two weeks in Mount Clemens are under investigation.

Residents and business owners have complained about graffiti spray painted on homes and garages. In one incident this week vandals spray painted cement at Shadyside Park on Gratiot Avenue north of the Clinton River and a garage on Cass Avenue.

Resident Gloria Haller believes the graffiti is the work of gang members trying to set their territory. Haller, a political activist, said the alley in back of her Cass Avenue home is frequented by drug dealers and their customers.

“Over the last few weeks, the gangs seem to be getting braver,” Haller said.

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Lately, she has seen gang graffiti on several garages in her area north of Cass Avenue and two blocks east of the railroad tracks. She has turned to the sheriff’s office for help and hopes detectives find out who is doing the damage that costs several hundreds of dollars to repair.

Several other people in her neighborhood refused to comment on the record because they were afraid of retaliation.

“We’ve had this before — kids running around with spray paint and causing damage to anything in their way,” Macomb County Sheriff Anthony Wickersham said.

Wickersham said his deputies are aware of the problem and are making extra passes in the troubled areas. He said people who see anyone acting suspicious or carrying around spray paint to call 911.

Haller said just last months she paid $490 for paint and $1,500 for labor to have her home and garage painted.

“The vandalism is sporadic and we ask that everyone be vigilant and help look for anything out of the ordinary — like young people walking with a can of spray paint in their hands,” Bondy said. “We are asking Neighborhood Watch people and everyone else to help us help them.”

Roseanna Ondra, presidents and founder of the Mount Clemens Neighborhood Watch, said her organization is well aware of the vandalism problem in certain sections of the city. She said her members are keeping a close eye on the troubled area as well as other crime problems in the city.

“We met with Sheriff Wickersham six months ago and presented him with pictures of vandalism our group collected throughout the city,” Ondra said. “We let the sheriff know we are aware of the graffiti problem and we have volunteers who are ready to help.”

Ondra said there isn’t much Neighborhood Watch volunteers can do except “being responsibly noisy.”

She added, “We’re not just crime busters but community fighters for our fellow neighbors.”

Anyone interested in getting involved in the organization in the northwest quadrant of the city can call Ondra at 586-770-6080 or attend a meeting at 7 p.m. on the second Monday of every month at the old St. Joseph East Hospital on North Avenue, two blocks south of Elizabeth Road. Those attending are asked to use the Madison Avenue entrance.